Comments on: State of Utah’s Social Media Guidelines: A Beginner’s Guide To Plagiarism

By: Lorna Malvorlagen Kostenlos

Lorna Malvorlagen Kostenlos — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:41:21 +0000

I read a few articles about that…and I was simply disgusted. Does ethics still exist or is it just a dream?

By: Rick Galan

Rick Galan — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 22:36:45 +0000

@David: Thanks for taking the time to update us on the progress. Pretty much every organization I've seen has gotten themselves into a little bit of trouble with social media - the real proof of a great group is the way they handle the repair. Exemplary job so far. :)

@Dan: just make sure you attribute the original source. :)

By: Dan sorensen

Dan sorensen — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 22:28:54 +0000

Nice post Rick. I think I’ll encourage my company to use these guidelines as well!

By: David Fletcher

David Fletcher — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:51:08 +0000

The State of Utah, as a policy, does not plagiarize or violate copyright laws. When I became aware that our Social Media Guidelines document had a large section that was largely taken from Intel, I immediately removed the document from our website and reviewed policy with staff members. I then contacted Intel’s Bryan Rhoads who was the primary author of this content to ensure him that the state of Utah has no intent of plagiarizing his content and to discuss the option of completely rewriting our guidelines or using the Intel content with proper attribution. Bryan suggested that he and Intel posted their guidelines with the intent that they be public and that ideas had been drawn from other sources as well as Intel and that we could proceed with use of the document. We have reposted the document to our site with the attribution that portions of the guidelines have been adapted from Intel. I want to thank Intel for their cooperation and help in creating guidelines that will aid our employees in proper use of social media.

By: Steph

Steph — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:23:04 +0000

Wow. Words really escape me when I see such obviously unethical behavior.

By: Jessica Petersen

Jessica Petersen — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:01:09 +0000

Nice job Rick!

By: Jessica Petersen

Jessica Petersen — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:59:41 +0000

The actions of the State of Utah are unprofessional and unethical in the tech world.

It is incredibly easy to utilize the work of someone else when it comes to technology. Because of this fact, it is common decency to include credit where it's due. Giving credit is also an incredibly easy act and there is no excuse for not doing so.

By: Rick Galan

Rick Galan — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:51:52 +0000

UPDATE! Dave Fletcher reached out and let me know that they have removed the doc until revised or properly credited, and the process has been reviewed with the staff.

By: Rick Galan

Rick Galan — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:48:35 +0000

I think that Intel’s point of view is “flattered” according to the tweet that Bryan Rhodes sent out: http://j.mp/1L1uul — which is healthy I think. :) I think we are all just a little miffed because the doc itself violates it’s own guidelines. :)

By: Deb Henry

Deb Henry — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:36:16 +0000

Point taken, but I doubt the person at Intel credited every single internet source that contributed to the original, either. As an engineer, I just like to see my ideas used. The desire for credit seems to cloud the desired end result.